


in love with you

by awespiring



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Comfort, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-16
Updated: 2019-07-16
Packaged: 2020-06-29 18:22:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19835944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/awespiring/pseuds/awespiring
Summary: Peter and MJ celebrate their anniversary together.





	in love with you

MJ wasn’t freaking out. It was more of a small panic attack. She and Peter had been together almost six months now and while Peter wasn’t a ‘bring you flowers’ everyday kind of guy, he showed his love and appreciation in different ways. He would bring snacks every morning to share with her or stop at her favorite coffee place and pick up her usual order, little things, you know. MJ returned the sentiment in short texts—a simple good morning text or checking up on him in class—and always waiting for him outside his class to make sure they could walk together. She would grab his hand when he would get jittery and over-animated while they were talking because sometimes things were overwhelming, but he also just had a lot of energy when talking to her.

But to explain why she was currently panicking, their anniversary was upon them. And while it wasn’t a full a year, it was still a monumental time considering what the hell they’ve gone through, plus they really like each other and can’t help but act like _those_ couples. MJ despised types like that until she became one herself. She gets it now.

Peter made it clear that he didn’t want to do anything big, as did MJ. They were pretty low-key, considering his identity being revealed in the past few months. It’s wasn’t like he was some big superstar at school and people knew about them being together, but going out in public? In the city? It was a risk.

“I’ll grab some takeout? We can hang out at my place?” MJ suggests one day, sitting cross-legged on his bed while they studied for a physics test.

Peter is tapping his pencil against the book spread open on his lap, taking a moment to look up at his girlfriend. He smiles, _genuine_ , and nods.

“Actually that sounds nice.” Peter tells her, “We can watch a movie or something.”

That was a week ago.

Now, here she was, standing in her bedroom with nothing but an oversized shirt and a pair of underwear on, hair pulled back in a shitty excuse for a ponytail. She wanted to make this special for him, so badly it hurt her to think about him not liking the surprise or set-up. MJ also woke up at the crack of dawn that morning to get started.

And yes, she knew that she had only suggested hanging out and eating and watching some boring movie they would forget about half-way through them watching, just to start making out for the rest of the night. But, Peter deserved so much. She couldn’t tell him she loved him, because even MJ didn’t know if she was at that point yet. She did care about him immensely and needed him to know that.

MJ is terrible with words and likes to ramble on about weird things, so talking wasn’t a strong point in this idea. She needed it to be simple but powerful enough to convey how she was feeling. So, she grabs a price of paper and starts numbering it. There were a million reasons why MJ likes Peter, why not write those down?

“Come on,” She mumbles to herself, searching through her junkyard of a room, throwing clothes haphazardly in whatever direction they chose. “I know you’re in here.”

“AHA!” MJ shouts triumphantly, holding up a small jar she found in the corner of her room on a random shelf. She ripped off the old label she had put on it and rubbed away the excess tape residue it left behind. She used to use it for some random jewelry that she didn’t care too much for, but it eventually found itself useless and empty—forgotten in her room.

She was totally about to Pinterest this bitch. MJ scrambled a bunch of random crafts and a small, cheap pair of scissors and got to work. She cut the paper into small strips after each number and folders them up so they would fit inside easily. She doodles a little around the glass but tries to keep it simple, topping off the lid with a generic black spider, closely resembling the one that Peter had on his suit. It was a decent effort and it actually looked kind of nice. But, she doesn’t end there.

She grabs a random old blanket, a faded red and tattered on the edges, a few holes spotting the material. It gave it character. MJ lays it across her bed and rearranged some of the candles around her room. She almost sets some on the bed but realizes that burning the house down was not on her agenda, so they end up on the small table beside her bed. And after a few other minor touches, she’s satisfied.

_Fuck me_ , she thinks. MJ hates how much of a sap Peter turns her into, not that it wasn’t always there, because it was. Peter just knows how to bring it out.  
Peter texts her later that evening when she steps out of the shower, wrapping the towel around her body.

‘ **On my way. Ran into some trouble.’** She reads.

Her stomach drops, fear rising

  
‘ **U okay? Come thru living room window, I left it unlocked.** ’ She replies quickly, fingers tapping away.

She manages to get dressed within that time, pulling on a simple white cotton shirt and a pair of leggings. It felt stupid to dress up for a date in your own house, so she went casual.

‘ **I’m fine. Not your room? Got a surprise?** ’

She snorts and pulls her hair back in a high ponytail, pulling some hair out randomly to give it a more _worn_ look. She never cared about her hair too much, but Peter always told her how much he loved seeing her face when she pulled it back. So, for Peter, _anything_.

‘ **Let me know when ur here** ’ She replies, ignoring his questions.

It’s not even a full minute later when he’s knocking on the window in the other room. MJ immediately tenses up, quickly surveying the room and making sure she had already prepared everything. She had managed to light the candles in the short time she had between that text and him showing up, and it seemed to be the last thing—besides the food, which she had gotten not too long ago and it was _thankfully_ still hot. MJ moves the bag and sets it on her bed. She takes a breath and nods, running to the living room to let him inside.

The immediate smile that graces his face when he sees her has MJ’s stomach doing backflips. He examines his surroundings outside to make sure the area is clear before pushing himself through the window. Peter kisses her on the cheek and sets his backpack on the couch.

“Your parents aren’t home?” Peter asks.

“They’re on vacation in Portugal, remember? They left last night.” MJ explains, crossing her arms over her chest and shifting on her bare feet awkwardly.

“Oh, yeah.” Peter laughs softly, looking over at her and then at his bag. “So, should I go to the bathroom to change, or?”

MJ tilts her head and shrugs.

“You can change here if you want.” MJ tells him but doesn’t make the move to turn around. Peter shrugs and presses the spider emblem on his chest and the suit falls.

MJ couldn’t have been the least bit impressed when he finally showed her how the suit worked, a couple months ago. It was really disappointing for it being some billion dollar suit. But, it was convenient. So, point one for the Spidey suit. She had also seen him change in front of her several times before, so they were over the awkwardness.

MJ’s thankful that Peter went casual too, opting for a black shirt and a pair of grey sweats. He looks up at her after he’s fully dressed and shoved the suit in his bag and throws it over his shoulder.

“So?” Peter asking teasingly, “Why couldn’t I come in through your bedroom window?”

“You’ll see.” She tells him, nodding her head in the direction of her room. Peter places a hand on the small of her back as he follows behind her, allowing her to lead the way.

“I was trying to be romantic, so if it’s lame, tell me.” MJ says, turning the knob and swinging the door open.

The room was already low-lit, the only light source being the candles and small lamp at her bedside. It was just enough. Plus, the candles made the room smell warm and inviting. It was slightly cinnamon-ish, but not so overwhelming it made your nose burn.

“MJ, this is,” Peter shakes his head and smiles at her, “ _really_ good. You spent all day doing this?”  
“Yeah.” She says honestly, “It’s not a big deal though.”

“ _No_ , come here.” Peter tells her, dropping his backpack to the floor and closing the door behind them. MJ shuffles closer and Peter wraps a hand around her waist, leaning his head up slightly to meet her lips. The kiss is quick and soft. She can taste the chapstick on his lips and laughs, pulling back. “This is awesome, MJ.”

“It makes me feel bad that I didn’t think of it first.” He adds, walking over to her bed.

“Dudes don’t always have to be the ones doing all the extravagant shit, you know.” She teases, following behind him before taking a seat across him on her bed. “Although I feel for them. This was stressful as shit.”

“Well let’s eat then. I’m starving.” He tells her, practically ripping open the plastic bag.

“I didn’t know whether to get plates or just eat out of the trays.” MJ says offhandedly, grabbing her food from his hand. “But, I was a little too lazy to do dishes so…”

“It’s fine.” Peter laughs, immediately digging into his food.

“So, what happened during your patrol?” MJ asks, loudly slurping a noodle into her mouth. Peter does the same, mocking her. She lightly kicks his shin in response and he looks offended, but it quickly fades.

“Just a couple of guys bothering some girls who were trying to walk home. Nothing bad, but they were really obnoxious. I made sure they left them alone.” He explains, all while practically vacuuming his food down his throat. He must have been starving.

“Nice. How chivalrous of you, Spider-Man.” MJ teases, setting her food down. She’d only eaten about half so far. Peter shrugs, nonchalant.

“I did get you something, though.” Peter tells her after a moment, while MJ was moving their food out of the way.

She moves so her feet are flat against the bed, between Peter’s legs, her legs raised slightly so she can lean forward on her knees. And when she turns her head to check the time on her phone, Peter quickly webs his backpack towards them, catching it in his hands.

“You never take those off.” MJ tells him, shaking her head.

“You never know when you might need them.” He tells her, wiggling his eyebrows slightly and pointing his web shooter in her direction.

She uses her foot to push him back, but he successfully dodger her attack and grabs her foot in response, pulling her towards him. The blanket ripples together underneath and between them, leaving a small amount of space between the two.

“Okay, now you’re just showing off.” MJ smirks slightly, softly shoving the palm of her hand against his face.

“I don’t hear you complaining.” He says flippantly, looking a little smug as he digs through his bag. He pulls out a small gift, no bigger her hand. It looks like a tornado hit while he was wrapping it, but it’s the effort that counts.

“Don’t talk crap about my wrapping.” He warns, gingerly handing the gift to her. “May can’t wrap either, so I was screwed.”

“It’s fine.” She smiles, finding a small opening in the gift wrap to pull it apart, taking the rest off and leaving it a messy pile on her bed.

She notices immediately that it’s a picture frame, but she also has no idea what kind of picture is in it because she’s never taken one with Peter, at least not to her knowledge. She flips it over slowly, running her fingers along the edges of the frame.

He heart drops into her stomach and her bottom lip pulls between her teeth. She smiles, but not on the verge of tears because MJ doesn’t want to cry, not yet.

It’s a picture that, seemingly, someone else took of them. Maybe Ned or Betty, or even May. She sees herself sitting with Peter on the couch, curled up in his lap. Her eyes are closed so she’s assuming she’s asleep, Peter’s were too. He had a hand curled around her head, fingers buried in her curls and her hand was resting loosely against the side of her neck. She looks relaxed, which is foreign for her, considering she spends most of her time scowling. It’s an intimate moment between the two and finds it sweet that someone took the moment to capture it. They couldn’t have been together longer than a couple months when this picture was taken, so Peter probably knew about it for a while. Oh no, she _definitely_ wants to cry.

“I know you hate taking pictures.” Peter begins, his voice is soft and timid as he watched her face. “But, I really like that one.”

“I love it.” She tells him, breathing in sharply before looking at him. “Thank you.”

She lunges forward suddenly, carefully swinging her arm around him to avoid crushing the frame. He wraps himself around her, allowing her to bury her face in his neck. And they’re like that for a moment, just breathing, eyes closed.  
“I made something for you. But it seems kind of lame now.” She mumbles against his neck, not wanting to pull away. But, Peter does that for her.

“I find that hard to believe.” Peter tells her honestly, staring over to look MJ in the eye. She slowly pulls back and places the picture frame on the table beside her bed, making sure it wouldn’t fall.

MJ leans practically halfway off of the bed to grab the small jar hidden under her bed frame, Peter grabs her hand to make sure she doesn’t fall face first into the hardwood floor. She laughs and forces herself back up, being careful with the gift. She takes a breath before handing it to him, feeling defeated. It was nothing in comparison to what Peter gave her. A special moment between the two? She couldn’t beat that. It all seemed silly now.

Peter examines it carefully, look at the small, intricate designs around the jar, running his fingers over the bumps that the paint had made. It reads, ‘For Peter’ on one side in cursive and has a heart on the other to fill the empty space, he assumed. He laughs when he sees the lid because MJ really loves teasing him about being Spider-Man. It’s the perfect way to compliment the gift to her boyfriend, who just happens to swing around in a spandex suit.  
When Peter glances up, she looks nervous and sick to her stomach. He reaches out to rub his hand against her thigh, comforting and reassuring. He slowly pops the lid open and pulls out a piece of paper, unfolding it with his hands.

“I’m really bad with explaining how I feel sometimes,” MJ says quickly, almost too cover up how stupid she felt right now. “It’s kind of lame, but I wanted to give you something that meant something to me.”

_You_ , she fails to tell him.

‘ _4\. I really like when we hang out on the weekends and you don’t worry about your hair, so it’s always curly and all over the place. It’s cute_.’

Peter laughs and glances up at her before reaching in and grabbing another.

‘ _17\. I like when you squish my face between your hands when I start rambling and you kiss me. I don’t know when to shut up sometimes._ ’

Peter nods to himself and smiles, looking up to squish her face in his hands gently. She laughs softly and shakes her head to move his hands away.

“You can save some of them in you want. You don’t have to go through them right now.” She tells him nervously. MJ had put a couple personal ones in there that she was dreading for him to read in front of her.

“One more.” He promises, reaching his hand in the jar again.

‘ _1\. I like you so much that I feel like I could be falling in love with you and that scares me._ ’

Peter’s face falls and he reads it about five times before he actually comprehends what he’s repeating in his head. When he looks up at MJ, she seems terrified because he knows that she knows what he just read. And maybe she wasn’t ready to feel so vulnerable in front of him, but Peter wanted nothing but to comfort her.

Peter loved her, he’s known for a while. But, he knows the MJ wanted to take things slow and he didn’t want to scare her away by forcing her to feel like she needed to say it back. It carried a lot of emotion for her, it seemed. So maybe he crossed a line, but he’s glad he did.

“M, you don’t have to feel that way.” He tells her quietly, putting the pieces back in the jar and closing it, setting it to the side. “You know that, right?”

She sighs, looking down at her lap.

“I love the gift. A lot. I hope you understand that.” Peter tells her, reaching out to grab her arm. He rubs his thumb against the skin gently, coaxing her to look at him. When she does, he motions her closer. She moves slowly, hesitantly. And soon they’re legs are a bunch of tangled limbs and she’s leaning forward to rest her head on his shoulder.

“I love you, MJ. And I’ve been really scared to tell you because I’ve felt this way for a while. I don’t need you to say it back and you don’t need to feel like you have to.” Peter comforts her, rubbing his hand against her back. “But don’t feel like your gift wasn’t as special, because it is. That takes a lot of vulnerability.”

Her heart flutters at the word and she makes a sound, something between a sob and a sad laugh. She doesn’t cry, but she wants to. MJ nuzzles against her boyfriend, wrapping both of her arms around his middle and squeezing, hard enough to make sure that she’s not dreaming and he’s actually there.

“Could you read the rest when you go home? Some of them are kind of embarrassing.” MJ looks up at him and he cranes his neck down to look at her.

“You don’t have to feel embarrassed, MJ.” He tells her, continuing to rub his hands against her back.

“Oh no. I meant for you.” She clarifies, a faint smile on her face. “Like _you_ might get embarrassed.”

“Oh. _Oooh_.” Peter realizes, eyes wide. He nods quickly and hugs her to him.

“Yeah, I’ll do that.”

MJ laughs and kisses the underside of his chin.

“I just need _time_.” She tells him. “Saying it makes it real. I have to prepare myself for that.”

And Peter understands. He always does.

“Take your time.” He assures her, “I’ll be here.”


End file.
